Swiss Innovation Forum 2023: From Mars robots, LSD and biohacking with reindeer innards...
The 18th Swiss Innovation Forum took place on November 30 at the Congress Center in Basel. Around 900 experts, decision-makers and lateral thinkers from business, science and politics exchanged views on application examples and visionary innovation. In addition to inspiring presentations, the 35th Swiss Technology Award was also presented in three categories this year.
This year's Swiss Innovation Forum program once again featured top-class speakers from Switzerland and abroad. Jürgen Geuter, Tech De-Evangelist & Co-Founder of Otherwise Network, opened the program on the Main Stage. He warned of the risks of AI that no one is talking about, such as the danger that more and more complex tasks will ultimately fall to humans and, at the same time, the routine tasks taken over by AI will disappear as a learning field for training new specialists. And he asked where the dynamics would remain if AI was only fed with data from the past. Nevertheless, he did not deny the positive possibilities of artificial intelligence.
The long road to Mars
Virtually representing the side of the technology enthusiasts Jennifer Harris Trosperproject manager of the Mars 2020 program at NASA. She provided an insight into the latest developments and successes in space exploration. It was impressive to see how the complexity of the Mars robots has increased over the decades and how many compromises - both technological and financial - have made it possible to achieve the best possible results. The next goal will now be to bring the soil samples collected by the Mars rover "Perseverance" back to Earth one day. However, it will still be some time before humans visit Mars. But it is still a goal, says Jennifer Harris Trosper. Catrin HinkelCEO of Microsoft Switzerland, highlighted the role of technology and innovation in the modern business environment - not without pointing out some of Microsoft's solutions, of course. She also emphasized her company's shared responsibility for any risks associated with the introduction of AI tools. She also referred to the need for regulation. Microsoft itself had already put forward a number of proposals in this regard, according to Hinkel. A "Lex Microsoft" then? A question that should definitely be asked...
Lateral thinking with LSD...
He also explained Teemu Arina the world of biohacking and its potential impact on the future of health and performance. And he also revealed some personal recipes on how he himself optimizes his daily routine to lower his biological age: sauna, ice baths, but also a special diet (just so much: coffee, reindeer and beef offal are some of the ingredients...) would be part of it, as he revealed to the astonished audience. In fact, the 41-year-old Finn looks considerably younger than you might think... Dr. Gregor HaslerProfessor of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, helped to create a deeper understanding of innovative approaches in research and presented possible perspectives for future scientific developments. In particular, he referred to the positive effect of LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) on creative processes because it stimulates the neuroplasticity of the brain. He backed this up with examples from the history of science: for example, the invention of the personal computer and in particular that of the computer mouse by Douglas C. Engelbart was the result of an inspiration that arose under the influence of LSD. Gregor Hasler could therefore well imagine that LSD could be used for innovation purposes under strictly controlled conditions and with selected individuals.
When the cell phone became Internet-enabled
Susie ArmstrongSenior Vice President of Engineering at Qualcomm Ltd., shared valuable perspectives on trends in the wireless and chip industry, including the story behind the first Internet connection that originated from a cell phone. Lukas Gysinfounder of uniqFEED and Delphine Donné, Vice President of Logitech Personal Workspace Solutions, focused their discussion on the special features and strengths of Switzerland as a major hub for innovation. The event also provided a look behind the scenes of the film with the director and screenwriter Edward Berger. "People always go back to the movies when they think, there's something I've never seen before," Edward Berger is convinced.
For the first time ever, participants were able to partially design their own program and choose between the program on the Main Stage and the Expert Stage. On the Expert Stage, there was the opportunity to delve deeper into the topics of "Innovation Culture" and the "Driving force of new technologies for innovation". Over 30 exhibitors also showcased their pioneering developments in the Experience Zone, bringing innovation to life. "Every year, the Swiss Innovation Forum builds a bridge between entrepreneurship and science and shows in an impressive way that the innovative strength of the Swiss economy is no coincidence," concluded Corine Blesi, Managing Director of NZZ Connect, the organizer of the Swiss Innovation Forum.
Swiss Technology Award
The Swiss Technology Award, Switzerland's most important technology prize, was also presented for the 35th time as part of the Swiss Innovation Forum. The coveted award in the "Inventors" category went to MATIS SA for its database-supported solution for simplifying the authentication of works of art. In the "Start-ups (Rising Stars)" category, the company won over matriq AG with its process for the traceability of plastic products, and in the "Innovation Leaders" category Lantal Textiles AG was awarded. What is particularly remarkable about this award winner is the fact that the company invested in the innovation for a digital textile dyeing process at a time when up to 90% of orders were lost as a result of the pandemic. With the new development of the process, Lantal hopes to successfully win back many lost customers. This is because the benefits of the process in terms of reducing the CO2 footprint are considerable.
Open-I I November 21 & 22, 2024 at the Kongresshaus Zurich
The Swiss Innovation Forum took place in Basel for the last time this year. Next year, the event will become the newly curated Open-i conference in Zurich. According to reports, the local proximity to science and the technology companies based in the Zurich area was the deciding factor in the change of location. This reasoning is unlikely to please the people of Basel: After all, the region is investing heavily in a own innovation parkand Basel is known to be one of the leading locations for the life science industry, which is also highly innovative...
